Rescue Me
by DarylDixon'sgirl1985
Summary: Gabrielle feels stressed about her life and her family send her to Shell Cottage for a bit thinking this would help her out. Maybe all she really did need was a chance to relax and think about something besides her own problems.


**Hey everyone. This story was brought to you by Pop Figure Collection, Build-A-Bear, Games Night, Wacky Wandmakers, Hangman, and First Aid assignment on Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Also for Fall Bingo on Monthly Challenges for All.**

**Pop Figure Collection - Ashoka Tano: Ashoka (character) Fleur Delacour, and Jumpsuit (location) Shell Cottage**

**Build-A-Bear - Make your bear smell nice Tropical Popscile Scent (emotion) happiness**

**Games Night - Dare (relationship) Aunt/niece or nephew**

**Wacky Wandmakers - Maple wood (word) explore, and Veela hair core (character) Gabrielle Delacour**

**Hangman - B (object) Bertie Botts Beans**

**First Aid assignment - Task 8 sunscreen Write about a day at the beach**

**Fall Bingo - 2C dusk/sunset, word count is 1,931**

**I hope you all enjoy Rescue Me.**

Fleur had been sure that inviting her little sister Gabrielle to Shell Cottage for the weekend would surely cheer the younger girl up. Their parents had contacted Fleur about a week ago saying that Gabrielle had fallen into some sort of sorrowful attitude but they couldn't figure it out. They had suggested Gabrielle spending more time with Fleur like when they were younger and Fleur wanting to see her little sister had jumped at the chance.

"Are you alright, Gabrielle?" Fleur asked watching as her silvery haired younger sister picked at her food forlornly. "Do you want me to cook something different for breakfast?"

Gabrielle shook her head not knowing what to tell the older sister she looked up to so much. She was in love with someone who wouldn't have her and that particular someone just so happened to be a girl. She was sure that Fleur would send her straight home to father and mother not wanting her anywhere near little Victoire or baby Dominique.

"Breakfast is good," she said picking up her pace at eating. The food was fine and definitely not the problem at all. She tickled the baby's foot as the little blonde haired girl giggled her aunt. "There is nothing wrong with the food at all."

"Then what is wrong?" Fleur asked finishing feeding Dominique and helping Victoire cut some more of her pancake. "Why does my leetle seester act so forlorn?"

"It's complicated, Fleur. I would rather not think about it right now. If that's alright with you? I'd rather spend time with little Vic, and Dom here." She tickle the baby's tiny toes and pulled Victoire into a side hug.

Fleur made a slight face at the shortening of her daughters names. She thought the girls names were beautiful and should be used instead of these shorter ones. They made her daughters sound like sons.

"What do we want to do today, girls?" Fleur asked as she wiped down baby Dominique's chubby baby cheeks. "Do we want to go down to the beach with Auntie Gabrielle and explore? Maybe that will cheer her up a bit?"

"Yay!" cheered Victoire excitedly. "Can we, Maman? Can take Auntie Gabrielle down to the beach? I want to show her my turtle friend if he's still down there."

"Why don't you ask Auntie Gabrielle if she wants to go to beach?" Fleur smirked as she turned the smiling four year old on her aunt.

"Auntie Gabrielle, do you want to go down to the beach with us?" Victoire asked in all the serious sweetness that child could possess.

Gabrielle stared at the younger version of herself and Fleur. With those blue grey eyes staring up at her intently there was no way that Gabrielle could possibly say no. Not without feeling guilty about it anyway.

"Of course," Gabrielle smiled as she watched Victoire jump up and down beside her chair.

"Finish your breakfast, Victoire," Fleur chided her daughter, "and then go upstairs and get ready for the for the beach."

"I have something for you," Fleur said before Gabrielle could get out of her seat. She had her hands behind her back like when they were little girls and used to get each other little presents while at school. "Close your eyes."

"Fleur," Gabrielle groaned not feeling like being treated like a child right now.

"Just do it!"

Gabrielle sighed and closed her eyes like she was told. She felt something weighty put into her hands and heard the crinkling of a bag. Opening her eyes she gasped in surprise. A bag of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans met her eyes. Maybe she'd take them to the beach and share them with group later.

"Perhaps they will remind you of better times," Fleur said before taking baby Dominique upstairs to change her for the beach.

A short while later with breakfast done and everyone changed for the beach they found themselves leaving Shell Cottage. It wasn't very far to get to the beach which was a good thing because Gabrielle was sure Victoire was bound to go crazy if it was far. Walking down the winding path she listened to Victoire's constant chatter. She was amazed at how much energy the little four year old had stored up in her.

"...and Teddy fell out of the tree and broke his arm," Victiore was saying as they arrived at the beach. "Come on, Auntie Gabrielle." The young child grabbed her hand and tried to drag her off. "I want you to meet my friend turtle. His name is Turtle."

Fleur motioned Gabrielle to go off with Victoire, as she set down the blanket for the group. Fleur smiled over at Bill, who'd come with them after all, and they started up a conversation.

Gabrielle couldn't stand to watch the cutesy conversation of her sister and her husband. She couldn't really have the person she wanted after all. She was pretty sure that her parents wouldn't let her. But she sure as hell couldn't handle watching someone else have something she couldn't have. Even if it was her sister.

"Come on, Auntie Gabrielle," Victiore sighed. "We have to find him."

Gabrielle nodded and allowed herself to be pulled off down the beach from the blanket. She would put all her concentration on helping find the missing turtle friend of her niece.

"What does your friend look like, Vic?" Gabrielle asked watching the young girl stop halfway to the water deep in thought.

"He's green, and he has a hard shell," was the reply that brought the first sign of laughter to Gabrielle in what felt like months. "He usually hangs out near the reeds or the waterfront. Mummy says we can give him scraps of food for his dinner too. Won't that be fun?"

Gabrielle nodded as she followed her niece down the beach to the waterfront. She watched as Victiore got down on the sand. The young girl was looking over all sorts of things that Fleur, and Gabrielle herself would have picked up and brought home.

"Turtle," she heard Victoire's voice call out. "Come here, Turtle. I want to show you to my Auntie Gabrielle."

A small smile crossed Gabrielle's face as she noticed a rustling sound coming from the nearby dunes. She looked towards where the sound was coming and then tapped Victoire's shoulder and pointed towards the place the sound was coming from.

"Maybe he's over there," she suggested quietly. "Let's go and see."

Victiore went to race off but Gabrielle stopped the younger girl short. "Why did you stop me from going over there?"

"You don't want to scare him off. Do you? If you go running over there the way that you were about to you will scare him and he won't want to come back."

Victoire's eyes went as huge as saucers and she shook her head. "I don't want him to be scared of me," she whispered. "How do we go then?"

"We have to go nice and gentle," Gabrielle said. "Slow like a turtle so he doesn't think he's being attacked."

Victoire nodded. "Do you know how to do that, Auntie?"

Gabrielle nodded. You walk like this. She started to take slow huge strides up the sand towards the dunes. Looking back she saw the look of awe on Victoire's face and felt a twinge of happiness spread through her. She didn't really need anyone besides her family.

"You try now," Gabrielle told Victoire. She watched as the young girl did exactly as she was shown. "Good job, Vic!"

They slowly but surely made their way over to the dunes and found that it was indeed a turtle that had been making the noise. A huge sea turtle that was slowly making her way back to the sea.

"This is my friend," Victoire crowed triumphantly and picked up the startled turtle. "Turtle, this my Aunt Victoire. Auntie this is Turtle."

"It's nice to meet you, Turtle," Gabrielle said pretending to shake the turtle's hand. "You seem a charming sort, sir. Where are you going so slowly?"

She pretended to listen and then nodded sagely. She looked over at the beaming face of mini Fleur and smiled sadly.

"Turtle says he has to get home to his maman, and papa, before he gets grounded for being out too late," she told Victoire, "But he's too slow to move quickly across the hot sand. He wants us to help him get to the sea. Do you think we should help him out?"

"But I don't want him to go." Victoire's lower lip quivered sadly. "He's my best friend besides Teddy and Teddy can't play with me right now."

"But you don't want him to get in trouble do you?"

"No." Victoire pouted jutting her lower lip out sadly.

"Then we shall help him. Right?"

Victoire nodded not sure whether to be upset or excited at the prospect of helping the turtle back into the sea. She looked up at her aunt's face as they both watched the turtle.

"Can I carry him?" Victoire asked.

"Of course, little one," Gabrielle nodded watching as Victoire changed the way she was holding the turtle. She had a smile as the little girl held the turtle like it was a baby doll and she was it's maman.

They walked back down to the water's edge. The waves gently lapping against the shore make Victoire shriek at the cold against her feet.

"It's cold," the child said matter of factly. "Are you sure he wants to go into the cold water?"

"That's where he lives," Gabrielle explained. "Like you live up there at Shell Cottage. Turtle lives out there in the sea."

"Ok."

Gabrielle felt a giggle of happiness explode from her lips as Victoire set the turtle down in the wet sand instead of in the water. The turtle feeling the cold sand began to move forward slowly but there were gathering birds that would try to eat the poor thing if it was left to its own devices.

"Do you want me to put him further in the water so he can go home?"

Victoire nodded.

Gabrielle scooped up Turtle as a seagull was about to dive and attack him. She moved slowly into the water allowing her body to slowly adjust to the water temperature. She found a perfect spot and placed the turtle down. A smile crossed her face as she watched him swim off.

"Good-bye Turtle come soon," she heard Victoire call from the beach.

Turning and walking back to the beach her heart no longer as heavy as it had been when she first arrived at Shell Cottage. She smiled at Victoire.

"What do you want to do now?" she asked the four-year-old who jumped up and down now.

"Can we find shells for Maman, and Pappa?" Victoire asked excitedly.

So Victoire and Gabrielle spent the rest of the day searching for shells, and exploring the beach. Upon returning to the blanket at dusk they found a nice huge supper waiting for them. At some point Fleur or Bill must have went and made dinner. Maybe all Gabrielle really needed was to clear her head and have a nice relaxing day at the beach. Her other problems could wait for later.

**I hope you all enjoyed Rescue Me as much as I enjoyed writing it. Fluff monster took hold and just wouldn't let me go until this little story was written.**


End file.
